With 149 million people in the United States celebrating on Saint Patrick’s Day – an incredible figure for a holiday that is not legally recognized as a holiday.

St. Patrick’s Day is the most popular holiday for beer drinking with the average person having 4.2 drinks and 32% of adult admitting to binge drinking. On St. Patrick’s Day beer sales increase 174% and spirit sales increase 153%.

Unfortunately, a holiday that celebrates drinking, leads to drunk driving and alcohol-related accidents. These accidents are often fatal. In 2018, 73 people in the US were killed in drunk driving crashes over on St. Patrick’s Day.

If possible; Plan a Sober Ride

Drinking during Saint Patrick’s Day is not uncommon. But if you do choose to enjoy a cocktail or two, keep yourself and those around you safe by planning for a sober ride. Ask a sober friend or family member to take you home. Take an Uber,  planned ride or even an old fashioned cab if that is your preferred method. You can even take a bus or train depending on where you live and where the party is from. Even in your sober ride, act appropriately so your driver can pay attention to the road. Remember, your driver may be sober, but there’s likely another driver near that is not.

Don’t Drink and Drive:

This first Saint Patrick’s day safety tip is obvious for a reason. Drinking and driving is not only dangerous to yourself but also everyone else in the vicinity of your vehicle. It should come as no surprise that January 1st has the highest percentage of deaths related to alcohol, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety data. Between 2007 and 2011, 42 percent of all traffic deaths during the holiday were directly caused by alcohol. Keep others from driving while intoxicated by suggesting they use other methods, like an Uber.

Party at someone’s house sleepover if possible or have a sober driver!

Eat Dinner:

First if going out at dinner have a full stomach since it is a great way to avoid alcohol poisoning.

Try to consume foods high in protein such as cheese, meat and nuts. These types of food will slow down the absorption of alcohol in the digestive system. This will give the alcohol more time to metabolize in the body resulting in a lower risk of alcohol poisoning. Our liver metabolizes about one alcoholic drink per hour. A good rule of thumb is a 12 oz. beer = 4-5 oz. of wine = 1.5 oz. of hard liquor. By sipping a drink rather than chugging it, your body will have more time to metabolize the alcohol which will result in less of a hangover. Consider ordering an appetizer if you’re out at a restaurant or snack on nuts while drinking at a bar.

Pet Safety:

Nothing frightens pet’s more than sudden loud noises. Extra attention must be given so your pets won’t run away in a panic. Scared, running pets can be hit by cars, cause accidents, and become lost…not to mention, frequently bite people if scarred or threatened.

Wait to Post on Social Media:

Yes, it’s tempting to document your holiday celebrations online with friends and family, but recommended is waiting until you’ve returned home to share. You never know who’s looking at your account and what their intentions may be.

“Approximately 4.1 percent of men and women will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer at some point during their lifetime, based on 2016–2018 data.  Rate of New Cases and Deaths per 100,000: The rate of new cases of colorectal cancer was 37.8 per 100,000 men and women per year. The death rate was 13.4 per 100,000 men and women per year. These rates are age-adjusted and based on 2014–2018 cases and 2015–2019 deaths.  In 2018, there were an estimated 1,365,135 people living with colorectal cancer in the United States.”.

National Cancer Institute (https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts)

“Colorectal cancer is the 2nd leading cause of cancer death among men and women combined in the United States. 25 to 30 percent of colorectal cancer patients have a family history of the disease.”

Fight Colorectal Cancer (https://fightcolorectalcancer.org/)

“The following risk factors we can control that put us at increase risk for developing colon cancer are:

‘The entire colon is about 5 feet (150 cm) long, and is divided into five major segments. The rectum is the last anatomic segment before the anus which is not part of the colon.”

National Cancer Institute (SEER Training Modules)

“There is no cure for MS but there are over a dozen disease modifying therapies (DMTs) licensed to treat relapsing and some forms of progressive MS. Taking one can mean you get fewer, and less serious, relapses. They can also slow down how fast your MS gets worse.

Lots of people with MS find it useful to actively manage their health in other ways, like through diet, exercise or giving up smoking.”

MS Society (https://www.mssociety.org.uk)

“Multiple sclerosis is a disease that impacts the brain and spinal cord which make up the central nervous system and controls everything we do. The exact cause of MS is unknown, but we do know that something triggers the immune system to attack the brain and spinal cord. The resulting damage to myelin, the protective layer insulating wire-like nerve fibers, disrupts signals to and from the brain. This interruption of communication signals causes unpredictable symptoms such as numbness, tingling, mood changes, memory problems, pain, fatigue, blindness and/or paralysis. Everyone’s experience with MS is different and these losses may be temporary or long lasting.”

National Multiple Sclerosis Society   (https://www.nationalmssociety.org/What-is-MS)

“Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a long-lasting (chronic) disease of the central nervous system. It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder, a condition in which the body attacks itself by mistake. MS is an unpredictable disease that affects people differently. Some people with MS may have only mild symptoms. Others may lose their ability to see clearly, write, speak, or walk when communication between the brain and other parts of the body becomes disrupted.”

“The spinal cord is a long, tube-like band of tissue. It connects your brain to your lower back. Your spinal cord carries nerve signals from your brain to your body and vice versa. These nerve signals help you feel sensations and move your body. Any damage to your spinal cord can affect your movement or function.  In MS, the immune system attacks the protective sheath (myelin) that covers nerve fibers and causes communication problems between your brain and the rest of your body. Eventually, the disease can cause permanent damage or deterioration of the nerves.”

MAYO CLINIC

The nervous system has two main parts:

• The central nervous system is made up of the brain and spinal cord.
• The peripheral nervous system is made up of nerves that branch off from the spinal cord and extend to all parts of the body.

The nervous system transmits signals between the brain and the rest of the body, including internal organs. In this way, the nervous system’s activity controls the ability to move, breathe, see, think, and more.¹

The basic unit of the nervous system is a nerve cell, or neuron. The human brain contains about 100 billion neurons. A neuron has a cell body, which includes the cell nucleus, and special extensions called axons (pronounced AK-sonz) and dendrites (pronounced DEN-drahytz). Bundles of axons, called nerves, are found throughout the body. Axons and dendrites allow neurons to communicate, even across long distances.

The Nervous System is a makeup of sub systems including:

The nervous system transmits signals between the brain and the rest of the body, including internal organs. In this way, the nervous system’s activity controls the ability to move, breathe, see, think, and more.

The nervous system is a complex, sophisticated system that regulates and coordinates body activities. It is made up of two major divisions or has 2 main parts, including the following:

1-CNS (Central Nervous System) and 2-PNS (Peripheral Nervous System)

• 1-Central nervous system. This consists of the brain and spinal cord.  The central nervous system (defined as the brain and spinal cord) is usually considered to have seven basic parts: the spinal cord, the medulla, the pons, the cerebellum, the midbrain, the diencephalon, and the cerebral hemispheres

SUBDIVISION OF THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM; CRANIAL NERVES:

3-The enteric nervous system (ENS) is a large division of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) that can control gastrointestinal behaviour independently of central nervous system (CNS) input. Mammalian neurons are located in either the CNS (brain and spinal cord) or PNS (cells with soma outside the brain and spinal cord).

The enteric nervous system (ENS) is a web of sensory neurons, motor neurons, and interneurons embedded in the wall of the gastrointesinal system, stretching from the lower third of the esophagus right through to the rectum.

The enteric nervous system (ENS) is known as the “second brain” or the brain in the gut because it can operate independently of the brain and spinal cord, the central nervous system (CNS). It has also been called the “first brain” based on evidence suggesting that the ENS evolved before the CNS.

So in review the makeup of the Autonomic Nervous System = Parasympathetic, Sympathetic & Enteric Nervous Systems.  Further subdividing down to the somatic and visceral nervous systems.

Somatic sensory input comes from the receptors of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin. These organs transmit information we associate with the five senses; making up the somatic nervous system in the peripheral nervous system.

Visceral sensory input comes from (surprise!) the viscera, or internal organs; making up the visceral nervous system in the peripheral nervous system.